With Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate being able to do cross-platform play between 3DS and Wii U, there are bound to be questions that pop up. The official Capcom PR statement about the game says that players can play alone, online with up to for players on the Wii U, locally using up to four Nintendo 3DS systems, or a combination of up to three Nintendo 3DS systems and one Wii U system. So, I went ahead and asked Capcom’s Senior PR Manager, Jason Anderson, a few questions that everyone might be wondering already.

I asked the following: “I was wondering if you could clarify something for me. Can players do split screen (4-players) on the TV while playing on Wii U? Can one player be using the Wii U controller while another uses a pro controller? What about two or three pro controllers?”

::Update:: To clarify, in addition to the options mentioned above, The following control options are available for Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate on the Wii U:

Options 2 and 3 also display info on the GamePad touch screen, if the user chooses to play using either of those set-ups.

He got back to me today, saying that the team told him “no” on all accounts. So, unfortunately they weren’t able to implement everything we fans could want, but know that these things take extra time; they have to not only program to allow those options, but they have to alter the character models so the system can handle multiple games running at the same time. This is the first time that the Monster Hunter series is making its way to 3DS and Wii U, so we can’t expect everything from the get-go. The Uncharted series (all on the PS3 system) didn’t get two-player split screen until its third iteration. If you fans want these options put into the Monster Hunter series in the future, the most beneficial thing you can do is head on over to their forums to request them (in a polite manner, mind you).

It’s not all downhill, though. The Monster Hunter series is launching a new title in North America on March 19th, 2013 (March 22nd in Europe), on new systems, and there’s cross-platform play–a very rare thing, indeed. Capcom is also promising that this will be the most expansive iteration of the game, to date. The Wii U version of the game will have online chat functionality, and both the 3DS and Wii U version will be available to conveniently be downloaded when they’re released.

If you want a sneak peek of the game, a demo will be made available for both platforms on February 21st. It’s time to once again take up your sword, weary warrior. There’s monsters about.

Ryan Southard

Ryan Southard is a video game enthusiast, dissecting games down to their tiniest details. Whether it’s new or it’s old, as long as it’s awesome, he’ll play it. Follow him on Twitter at @Ryan_Southard